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| LAKE ADVENTURES 3710 Farnum Creek Rd, Milford, KS 785-307-1901 extremekansas@yahoo.com |
"I felt like I accomplished so much in such a short time. I faced several fears and came back more confident and secure. I loved the challenges and had so much fun. Everyone was so encouraging and supportive in everything. I really felt incredibly comfortable there." Check out the Photos |
| Wild Outdoor Women's Retreat 2010 3 days and 3 nights . . . not a long time, but when it is spent outdoors with a group of remarkable women, it can have an imeasurable impact. The WOW Charm School and Retreat was full of challenging and fun activities--climbing, rappelling, yoga, navigation, kayaking, fishing, etc. But since the retreat is led by women and there are only women present, the support and encouragement that happens in the group is the most rewarding part of the whole experience. Day 1, Yoga and Ropes Megan started off the retreat by leading us in an hour of relaxation, power and centering stretches and poses. She was an awesome leader and all of us wished we could get that hour start every day of the retreat and probably every day in general. Yoga to Climbing was the perfect transition. When we talked about our fears and goals the night before, most everyone said that climbing was their biggest fear and also what they hoped would be their greatest triumph. So our 1st goal in ropes was to get the information and build our confidence. We learned the difference between climbing, mechanical ascending, abseiling and lowering. Then we practiced tieing in and the 2nd floor of the lodge. After an impromptu birthday party in the woods, kind of big one, it was time for the real climbing and rappelling. The challenge here was to climb a 35 ft tree (with belay), cross at the top to another tree and rappel down. There were many tense moments, but all of the them followed by laughter and feelings of accomplishment. After this, we were pretty much ready for anything--and it's still early on Day 1. On to the cliffs and more rappelling and anchors. One of the women set the anchor for rope #2 after our anchors class and the whole class used that rope for the next hour. This part was a favorite for many because after the earlier challenge, it seemed more relaxing. After the cliff, it was on to mechanical ascending at the observation tower. Climbing up a rope is much harder than climbing up a rock, but it can be alot of fun. Even though it was after 7pm, everyone wanted to come along and either attempt the "jumar" or watch. Day 2, Navigation/fishing/kayaking The next morning came earlier than originally planned, since we had interest in our group in trail running and happen to have one of the best trails in Kansas just steps outside of the lodge. Today's trail run included even more women after yesterday's enjoyable morning run. After breakfast it was time for map reading, compasses and navigation principles. We learned to plot UTM coordinates, read a compass, recognize terrain features and topographical map info and make decisions about travel based on all information. Then it was time to go out and find some checkpoints. The field exercise was one of the biggest surprises of the retreat for many of us. Everyone was SO excited and pumped after finding their checkpoints. Fishing 101 was up next and there was a little less enthusiasm for this class initially. But the class realized pretty quickly that the fishing that was being taught was not the same fishing their husbands necessarily do. Simple, fun, rewarding and multi task oriented is a way of fishing mostly women would be excited about. After a paddling lesson, we all took to the water in kayaks. A couple of hours paddling around Farnum Creek was the perfect way to "get our feet wet" for tomorrow's river trip. Day 3, Kayaking the Smokey Hill River Starting in Chapman and ending in Junction City, we had about 14 miles of the Smokey to cover. The past month had brought heavy rains and high water levels, so our put in brought an extra bonus of mud spa treatment, then we were off down the river. Flowing at a pretty good speed, the river did most of the work and we were able to relax and visit while enjoying the scenery from water level. We broke for a sandbar lunch and swim/cool down in the river before paddling the last stretch and saying goodbyes. Although the temps were around 100 degrees, it was still a great day to be on the river with a group of wild outdoor women. The WOW Charm School and Retreat is not about being tough and getting dirty (though both of those are bound to happen). It's about taking time for yourself as a woman and enjoying the simple things in life . . . the outdoors, the company of good friends, conquering your fears and rediscovering who you are when not surrounded by the lives that we love but sometimes define us. |
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| 2011 Heartland AR Series BonkHard Chill AR Wild Hares Adventure Race Extreme Break Up AR Smithville Adventure Race Chadron Adventure Race Run, Row, Rock & Roll AR Warrior Challenge Psycho 43 (Championship) |
| 2011 Other Races Tour De Lizard MTB Race |
3/12 3/13 3/20 4/02 4/09 4/23 5/21 5/28 8/19-22 8/27 9/18 11/05 |
| 2/19 3/19 4/02 5/07 5/21 6/18 9/17 11/05 |